Towel servidor



Aug- 7, 1934. A. l. HONDE'VILLE TOWEL SERVIDOR 2 Sheets-Sheet l FiledNov. 4, 1952 AQLfIon devlle ATTO-RFNEY g- 1934- A. l, HONDEVILLE1,968,833

TOWEL SERVIDOR Filed Nov. 4, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 4 A.[. H012 ale ville5%.. BY .uw

ATTORNEY q U ED STATES Patented Aug. 7, 1934 PATENT OFFICE 1,968,833TOWEL senvmon TowelvManufac turing Calif., a corporation Comp any, SanFrancisco,

Application November 4, 1932, Serial N0. 641,183

4 Claims.

This invention relates to public service towels and a cooperating;dispensing apparatus designed to use fabric as distinguished from papertowels. The principal object of my invention is to provide a towel anddispensing arrangement of this a general character so constructed thateach suc" oessive user has an individual. towel for his use and it isnot necessary for him to have any contact with the towelpreviously used;Also there is no mechanism to beoperated in connection with thedispensing and .-use,of the individual towels and which is liable to getout of order. 4

My improved servidor therefore is far more:

sanitary to use than the continuous roller mounted typeof towel nowcommonly installed in public lavoratories and the like, in which thesoiled portion of the towelmust be engaged and pulled by a subsequentuser when exposing a clean portion of the towel for his use. Also inconnection with such dispensing it isnecessary for the user to press theknob which controls the dispensing mechanismand which is handled byeverybody using the apparatus-another unsanitary feature which I avoid.Also, since I have eliminated the neces the dispensing mechanism, thedispensing apparatus itself is muchsimpler and cheaper to manuafactureand-there is nothing to get out of order. s Further, these continuouslong towels are difgofioult and costly to launderwhereas my towelarrangement is such that it may be laundered without anyironing, or theuse of anylspecial method or apparatus in connectionwith-suchlaundering. A further object of theinvention is to produce asimple andinexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedinglyeffective for the purpose for which it is designed. These objects Iaccomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of partsas 0 will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification andclaims. 1

In the drawings similar characters of reference indicate correspondingparts in the several views: Fig. 1 is a perspective view' of my improvedservidor equipped with the towel packagea show ing one door open toexpose the towel holding spring mounted thereon. I Fig. 2 is a verticalsection of the apparatus. Fig. 3 is a perspective of the towelsupporting and pressing unit of the apparatus detached from the cabinet.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a towel package. Fig. 5 is a sectionalelevation of a modified form of servidor.

sity of Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a further modified form of towelpackage.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary enlarged section showing ameans for removablyattaching the towels of the modified package together.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a towel of said modified packageoutstretched.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on thedrawingsand particularly at present to Figs. 1 to 4, 1 denotes thecabinet of rectangular form and open on the front. This cabinet isslightly wider than the width of the towels 2 (which is practicallysquare) and is somewhat taller than twice the height .of a towel. Theupper portion of the front of the cabinet is provided with hingedmirror-doors 3, substantially the height of a towel and normally heldclosed by suitable catch devices 4. At their upper ends the adjacentedges of the doors meet each other as indicated but for the majorportion of their length such adjacent. edges are separated to leave avertical opening as at 5 wide enough to receive the hand.

- Disposed in the upper portion of the cabinet is a panel 6 mounted atits lower end on a hinge 7 secured to the back wall of the cabinet onalevel slightly more than that of the lower edges of the doors. Rigidu-shaped hangers 8 whose legs are, disposed in vertically spacedrelation project forwardly from the paneladjaoent the bottom intransversely spaced order. These hangers may be of any of the variousstandard forms such as are used in connection with'loose leaf binders ofdifferent kinds or so that a towel package may be placed on and removedfrom the hangers at will.

The individual towels 2 are permanently bound together along one edge byrivets 9 or the like and are punched with holes 10 between the rivets toreceive one leg of the hangers. Adjacent their opposite edges the towelsare provided with a single opening 11 to receive a peg 12 which ismounted in the back of the cabinet adjacent top and centrally of itswidth and projecting freely through an opening 13 in the panel. Justbelow the opening 11 each towel is provided with a finger tab 14. a a

The length of the hangers and the depth of the cabinet is sufficient toreceive two or more towel packages each one of which is preferably madeup of twenty-five towels. In mounting the towel package in place it isengaged with the upper legs of the hanger and extends upwardlytherefrom, lying against the panel 6 and disposed between the panel andthe doors which are initially- 01.1Chil18 or: tub; and; after'l'aunderingand dry.tum,-,

opened but which are closed after the towel package is thus in place.The panel is provided with spring means 15 constantly urging it forwardand flat springs 16 are mounted on the 5 backs of the doors and extendat a downward zz-clean towel isthen of coursexpartially exposed throughthef-openingfi'for asubsequentzuser with- 3 out theilatter having to.touch: a. towel'previously used. When the last: towel .ofaepackagehasbeen z :disengaged from-:thwpegand used the weight ofthexremaining .-..used towels ofcthe package 1 will. 1 cause.therpackage as a" whole to .slide aboutthe converging angle relativetoqeach other to engage the adjacent portions ofathe outermost or fronttowel to the sides of the opening 5.

The towels which even when fresh are limp and unironed and will not tendto slip or sag downwardly or outwardly of themselves into the opening 52-The-- peg 12 aids in thus supportinghthe;towels and also prevents theentire package of towels as a 15 unit from possiblyslipping-down:from-=between;?

the panel and springs 16 without necessitating;v the use of very heavysprings.

In operation it is only-'necessar'yfo'r theuser to grasp the exposedtowel by thertipuand :pull w the same forward. The towel will thus bedisengaged from thenpeg and the springs 16 and.- will be drawnthroughthe opening 5"between the :doors,.thuszexposingxthe entire .areaof thetowel, from thetop tov thehangen'foruse. :After using.

the towel it isemerely let go andthe towelwill.

then: drop .and hang down in the lower portion of the cabinetandagainsta previously used towel of the package as indicated in'Fig. 1;The next are therefore held outstretched:

. -From-the-foregoing description it will be readilyseenthat I haveproduced such a device as substantially fulfills the objects of theinvention as set-forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferredconstruction of the de- -vice,fstil1 in practice such deviations fromsuch detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure'fro'm 'thespirit of the invention, as defined by the .app'endedclaims.

Having. thus described rny invention"wh'at I claim as new-and: usefuland desi're to'secure by Letters Patent is: I

1. A towel servidor-comprising an open front cabinetto'conta-imaplurality of individual towels,

a panel thecabinet; hinge means mounting said panel along its lower'edgeto the back of the cabinet; hanger elements projecting from thepaneladjacent its hinged edge, the towels along one edge having openings'slidably engaging'said elements, means on the cabinetholdin'gthe-towels inan upstanding positionfrom s'aid edge and exposinga certain portion of the" foremost towel -hangers tooccupy a positionon'.the'f.lower legs hand engagement, means acting of the hangersasshown viniFi'g. 2;:.-.The package.

amay be easily laundered, itIbeing only--:necessary torplacethe same in.amordinary .washing:.ma-

' vsire'drfiat :outstretched;form twithout; ironing.

.31: the servidor is essentially the-same as :thatabove 1 .arated and inconnection, together asra package..

described. .Thectowels' 2:: however .may be sepaAlso-the-lower .legsofrthehangersi 8a are in the form of rods l7 whichldepends'some distanceof the cabinet la is opened and is attached to o'r formed 'with-a-depending chute 18 which runsthrough -the floor and .isconnectedto'the.

laundry-chute of the building. This'structure is particularly adaptedfor hotel, hospital-and, similar-use; Of course-the towel packages firstdescribed may also be-used in connectionfiwith this-apparat'us ifdesired. ln-"Figs. 6 we amodifid-form of towel pack-v age is shown. Thisis intended forsuse 'wheu it isdesired to iron thetowels in' order'thatthey maylpresent more attractive appearance-w-theiri-initially:loweredges having holes engaging theaupperlegs ofthe hanger elements prior to which-case the-towels must ofcourse beseparate ed to be folded centrally of its =ends= and'pro- Tofacilitateironing opera- -tio1'1sif--such:towe1 2a is of double length adapttourge =the panelfor-w'ardly about its'hinge as an axis.

2. A- structure as iii-claim 1, in which-said hangerelementscompriseU-shaped members transversely-spacedand set with their legs inveringengaged 'with- 'the"upper*"legs ofsaid -elements.

3. A- structure as in claim 1; in' which said hanger elements compriserods projecting forwardly from--thepanel in transversely spaced relationand formed at their forward-endswith downward extensions-spacedfrom *theback of thepabinet'and unattached at their lower ends.

4. A towel servidor-comprising acabinet to "contain a plurality of'individualtowels'and having'a' v'ert-ical'opening in front to 'expose aportion of the foremost-to'welya panel iii-the cabinet toengage therearmost-towel; means to urge thepanelforwardly'against the" towels soas to maintain the same in an upstanding position, and hangerelementsa'for the :towels". :proj'ecting forwardly oitthepanel. fromadjacent its lower edge. and :spacedapart.transversely; each hanger 1comprising a Ushaped-member;,disposed'with its legs inverticall-y-spacedrelation;-.-the towels." along use of the. towels.

... (AUGUST HONDEVILLE.

